Cod opening is up there with the day Santa brings presents and the Easter bunny brings chocolate, as far as anglers go.

This isn’t just about the day or first weekend the season opens. It’s about getting away with a good mate, or group of mates, and doing what mates do.

It’s the excitement of getting prepared for the trip, the anticipation of that big green monster that’s going to smash your lure. You know the one I’m talking about, that enter your head whenever you have a quiet moment to close your eyes.

It’s about sitting around a fire, talking about what you caught or lost on the day, comparing what you did against the other blokes, having a quiet drink, telling some bad jokes and reminiscing. It’s about trying to hook that big one your mate saw last year that lives under that monster log that’s up around that bend in that big hole near that willow.

Can’t wait to get out there. This opening really looks like it should be one of the best, with conditions near perfect.

Basic gear if you haven’t been chasing cod before and want to have a crack? Well, you can go with either an eggbeater (threadline) reel or a baitcaster. You need something big enough to hold at least 100-150m of 30lb braid.

Rods vary a bit, as it depends if you’re going to toss lures around or bait fish, but generally you need something between 5’6” to 6’6’’ that has a bit of guts to it.

Line? Well braid is by far the most popular way to go and 30lb to 50lb are the two popular breaking strains.

Lures? I’d reckon you wouldn’t want to go out without at least a couple of spinnerbaits and a couple of hardbodies 70-100mm in length. On top of that, a bit of trace to join to your braid in 30lb or more, hooks in size 3/0 or larger, a pair of braid cutters and sinkers to suit the current you’re fishing.

Cod can show up anywhere, but it’s best to concentrate as close as you can to any structure you can find, the most obvious being old logs or snags. Only 4½ sleeps to go – no one sleeps properly the night before!    

Dartmouth – is still good.  Quite a few caught over the weekend and early week. Most I heard of were on Fenders and Crickhoppers.

Hume – was a bit slow on the weekend but heard a few decent reports of yellas trolled on Double Downers.

Streams – still look good, despite the rain. Quite a few smaller fish among the keepers though.

Blowering – is shaping up great with some good yellas and the odd cod also showing up in the bycatch.

Burrinjuck – is pretty much the same, but most reports are revolving around bait fishos.